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Brent Daniels
A Lonely Place for Dying (Original Motion Picture Maxi-Single)

Posted: Tuesday, December 09, 2008
By: Ilker Yücel
Editor

Brent Daniels has already had some experience in the world of soundtracks, primarily as the vocalist for Hednoize, a band whose music has been featured in a number of films and television shows. Now signed onto provide the full soundtrack for Justin Evans' upcoming thriller A Lonely Place for Dying, this maxi-single for the film's theme song is but the first taste of Daniels' talents as a solo artist. From the get go, the original version of the song blazes with pure rock & roll energy as Bern Locker's guitars blister and burn with all the fury of any classic rock track. While this might be off-putting for those more familiar with Daniels' more electronica-based work, his voice begins soft and mysterious in the verses, but soon pierces emotive and defiant for the remainder of the song. The remixes, however, return to more comfortable territory for Daniels, with his own remix being a perfect industrial club stomper with its pumping rhythm and squelching synths akin to what he's known for in Hednoize. Similarly, Daniel Lenz's remix gives us a straightforward techno remix perfect for the dance floor, while Bern Locker's remix naturally strips the song down to emphasize the guitars, bringing the single around full circle. Listening to this song and its various mixes, one is left curious as to what Daniels has in store for the rest of the film score proper, although the song does well as a theme song, not unlike the classic songs that have defined the James Bond series over the years. There is also a certain amount of intrigue in seeing the return of Brent Daniels to the limelight after the all-too-brief moment that was Hednoize's 2000 album, Searching for the End. With industrial and electronic music oversaturated with danceable rhythms and infectious bass lines, it's nice to see an artist like Daniels who is not only incredibly adept at such musical modes, but also has the melodic and vocal chops to still stand above the rest of the pack. As such, A Lonely Place for Dying is hopefully a sign of bigger and better things to come.